Bulk Market, London's first waste-free supermarket
Tired of marketing and politics, Ingrid Caldironi decided to create the first waste-free supermarket in Hackney (London) and following, what is now almost a philosophy of life, the circular economy.
The Bulk Market is her great little experiment that started in September as a 'pop-up' , but thanks to the ' crowdfunding ’ will be permanent in November. Here people can find everything they need in their day to day but in the most sustainable way possible.
A total of 300 products , from homemade pasta to natural cosmetic products. But beware, there are no brands because the products come from social enterprises, cooperatives or farms . "People can learn how food is made and where, all the way from field to table," explains Ingrid.
The thing does not stop there, because the same supermarket is also designed in a sustainable way. How? Jan Jongert, one of the founders of Superuse in the Netherlands , and Andreas Lang, co-founder of Public Works, will design a space from materials found in unusual places, such as the Royal Opera House.
"We'll be taking a bunch of theatrical fabrics and metal pieces to transform into original store fixtures," says Ingrid.
This idea is not far-fetched if we think in numbers. According to Wrap UK, the average recycling rate in Britain it is 43%, well below the EU's 50% target.
That means 57% of the resources are being dumped, incinerated, or dumped into the ocean. In other words, around a fifth of the food brought into UK households ends up as waste, which is equivalent to 7.3 million tons.
It is time to reflect, dear friends.